The problem is that most video recordings that MythTV make are huge, and others that you may have downloaded are in various formats of AVI, mpeg and whatever.

Traditionally the method is to use Handbrake, which re-encodes a video file in a nice neat iPhone (or other) format ready to drag into iTunes and Sync (upload) onto the unit so you can watch it later. This is great if you want to put something there to watch on the train or bus or on a plane… but requires planning, preparation and time to do this.

If you want to see something that you recorded on your TV-PC decoder system (like MythTV) last night while still in bed on a Sunday morning then that’s an issue.

Now just to cover a technical point, MythTV records big mpg videos and there are more than 4 solutions I tried such as;

• MythTV – The Web Server
  Delivers streaming content to PC’s but this uses flash which does not work on iPhones and is pretty low res.
• MythExport supposedly re-encodes recordings and puts them into an RSS feed
  Problem: still need to sync with iTunes to view
  Problem: the re-encoding doesn’t work, at least in Lucid MythBuntu
  Problem: even if it did work I have networking/sync/iTunes issues with it
• MythPodcaster does a similar thing above, but live
  Problem: Resides in a Tomcat (other) web server
  Problem: Doesn’t work, unable to get all components installed on Lucid Mythbuntu

Hello AirVideo, an application I recently and eventually found to do this and it works.

The product works in two parts, the viewer (residing on your iPhone or iPad) and a server, ready and running to deliver and re-encode your movies and recordings on demand.

I first got the server and put it on my work desktop machine, it runs as a service and allows you to ‘point’ it to a directory on your drive where your video files are and can watch them.

This is available in both Mac and Windows and it could not have been simpler.

Second part is the AirVideo iPhone or iPad application or Viewer.

There is a free trial version on iTunes, or the full version for $3.99 AU. (iTunes links)

So, my first try was on my work pc, I downloaded and ran the server, easy, installed the iPad app and then in this added a reference to my server, the network IP address of my desktop pc. Then over my work network it connected to the server, showed all the movies in that directory and allowed me to watch them.

This takes a bit of processing power and may slow your desktop pc down a bit when you do this but it was all just too easy. The resulting quality and speed however was great.

Now onto MythTV. This uses the linux operating system and can be quite fun and a challenge to get running. I have talked about this before.

The issue is that, if Air Viewer Server is only for Mac or Windows, how to use it on this platform?

The answer is here, a basic guide for installing this application using ‘wine’, a windows emulator for unix and have it run on your mythtv system.

Two things I would add to that are…

1. Do this on a terminal window on the box itself. Do not just telnet to the system and try it because the install needs a GUI interface while it pretends to be a windows system.
2. After step 2 of this guide, you also need to install Bonjour from apple.

Step 2.5:
wget http://support.apple.com/downloads/DL999/en_US/BonjourPSSetup.exe
wine ./BonjourPSSetup.exe

And it works, AirVideo server is running on my Myth box, I can stream and view any recordings or stored video files at will to my iPad.

The one last thing I am looking at is the filenames. Those created in Myth are date/channel/time/length based and not informative of the actual recording. There is a script I am going to try that is intended to produce a list of nicely titled links referring to the videos which should make finding the recordings much nicer… but for another time.

I hope you enjoy and find this helpful.

Edit/Addition

To make this all a little nicer, listing the programs by name rather than the Myth id format would be helpful and this is how I have done it.

On the myth system I now use a perl script called mythlink.pl which makes symbolic links to the recordings.

I made a new directory in my files, next to recordings called airvideo and did chown to the mythtv:mythtv user and chmod to 775
copy /usr/share/doc/mythtv-backend/contrib/user_jobs/mythlink.pl to /usr/bin
mythlink.pl –link /..(location)/mythtv/airvideo
(note, that’s a [double] dash dash link)

Set the airvideo server to the new airvideo directory location instead of recordings

To make this happen regularly I put this script in a crontab so it runs every 30 minutes keeping them updated regularly.

Airvideo can stream and convert on the fly, this works ok but I have found its hard to skip and sometimes drops out when trying this on an iPhone, on an iPad it seems to work better.

Airvideo allows you to pre-convert files allowing much better playback. This is done in the client and on my machine (a fairly nice AMD 64) a 1.1Gb recording (of 40 minutes) was converted to a 188Mb m4v in under 10 minutes.

Having the nicely named program links in a seperate airvideo directory also means the converted files are located and managed there.

Good luck

All the same, I have done some updates. This new version of the User Guide is updated to newer versions of Acrobat Reader (8 and above) and also it’s now OCR’d so you can search it.

Get the OCR version (8.5Mb)

Get the original (Colour) version (4.5Mb)

There is also the full workshop manuals and extra diagrams for download here too.

I am now nearing 55,000 Kms on my ‘97 across. It’s going great guns after some minor and major repairs to it since I got it. In some order, chronological memory…

• Chain and Sprocket
• Head stem bearings
• Fuel tank sensors (replaced after leaking)
• Temperature gauge
• Front fork bushes
  Getting some pretty nice spring and work done by suspensions-r-us.
• New rear tire
• Gear lever actuator

So I have been doing some serious maintenance on it. I would rather it was perfect but a 13 year old bike is not without it’s issues but generally I have been happy with it, it rarely lets me down.

I would love some feedback using the form below or direct to warren[@]morgans.cc

Here are some new bike pics, for your entertainment…

The other day, I noticed the charger for the phone was not on (no light) and it wasn’t charging the handset… Soon it was flat. No big deal as there is also a charger in the base router box I got but all the same I want the second charger unit for downstairs.

Me: Called them up

Them: All our operators are busy, we can call you back in 20-27 minutes…

Me: OK

Them: Phone rang 15 minutes later…

Me: Explained problem.

Him: And you have tried connecting to another power outlet.

Me: Yes, but no luck. The handset is fine, it’s charging in the other base.

Him: OK, Seems the router and phone was sent as part of a bundle, when we send a replacement you may have to send all the older equipment in return, just a minute.

Me: Wait for about 2 minutes

Him: Thanks for waiting, ok, we will send a replacement handset and base charger. When you get these you can return the faulty/old ones in the return package we send along with it.

Me: OK, that’s great, thanks for your help.

Him: Anything else we can help with?

Me: No, that’s all thank you.

How good is it when it works? Thanks iiNet.

Her: You want medium coffee? (Handing me one she just made as I entered)

Me: No, I haven’t ordered anything yet

Her: Oh um… Goes back to serving first person

Her: You want this coffee?

Me: No, I haven’t ordered one yet…

Her: Oh, what you like?

Me: Small latte please.

Her: Rings it up on register, gets distracted by LCD screen listing all the shop orders.

Her: $4.15 thanks…

Me: No, I ordered a small latte

Her: Oh, um, Medium… (Me: No).. Oh, um $3.15

Me: Paid and waited… and waited…

Her: Here is coffee.

Me: Thank you, do you have any sugars?

Her: Um, oh, um.. I put one in.

Me: ok, thanks..

Me: Tasted, burnt tongue.

Me: Waited until it was much cooler.. Um, hello taste..

I would say almost no coffee and no sugar was in it, this is not a decent experience or result.

I went into the store, half way in a guy with a clip-board decided he needed to ask if I wanted any help, um, just on my way to the service counter to pay some bills. He nicely showed me toward the service counter that I was aiming for (it’s not a big shop and I didn’t expect to need directions or get lost)…

Her: Can I help you?

Me: Yes, I have a credit here I would like transferred to pay off this other bill please.

Her: Oh, um, excuse me… and she wandered off.

Her: Returning she says, no sorry, you will have to call our customer service to do that.

Me: Um, is this a service counter for the company your asking me to call?

Her: Oh we can’t handle that here.

Me: Why not?

Her: The unfortunate blank stare when you know you have asked a question that’s a bit too tough for them to process.

It could have been so much easier, can they not give me a credit against another bill, it’s not even like they are handing me cash to do that.

And on another level, why did this particular company provide me a credit that I can’t use, now I have to call to get a cheque sent that I have to cash at a bank, if I had a credit why didn’t they just send me a cheque? Why didn’t they let me cash out the credit at one of their service centres when I was there, in person?

Too many questions go unanswered…

OK, all good, so when we returned later and came in we got the glasses and half my tickets back all usual then we went for some munchies.

It seemed to be taking a while for them to server a group of three people in front of me, glad we were early as they seemed to take ages, not to worry, we waited.

Then it was our turn…

Me: Medium coke and a medium popcorn please…

Him: What?

Me: Medium coke and medium popcorn please (slower and louder)…

Him: You can get a bundle, it’s cheaper.

Me: OK, if it’s the same thing then sure…

Him: What size?

Me: Um, a medium please…

Him: It’s a large drink and medium popcorn as a bundle…

Me: Ah ok, so that’s cheaper than what I asked for is it?

Him: No response… just an unfortunate stare back at me…

Me: OK, yes, the large coke and the medium popcorn then, as a bundle please…

Him: He gets the popcorn and puts it in front of me.

Him: And what drink with that?

Me: Didn’t that include the coke that I asked for in the bund… Oh, you mean what flavour drink did I want now since we have been discussing cokes for the last 10 minutes…

Me: A coke please.

Him: Gets me a coke.

Him: Anything else with that?

Me: No… (thanks for asking, but did I ask for anything else before?)

Him: Spends another few minutes on the til and makes up a price.

Me: I pay, I get change, I get my own straw and head off…

Not sure if I even got a thank you or come-again, but I really didn’t feel like I had a good experience.

This could have been a lot quicker and easier if this person that worked there, ready to take my order just listened to me and thought about what I wanted instead of pretending to be dumb at each and every point in the transaction.

It could have gone like this;

Him: Hi, what would you like?

Me: A Medium Coke and a Medium popcorn please.

Him: Sure, you can get a large coke and medium popcorn as a bundle and it’s cheaper.

Me: Yes, sounds good, please.

Him: Gets medium popcorn, gets a large coke and hands me a straw…

Him: Anything else?

Me: No thanks.

Him: Calls up price quickly and gives me the right change.

Is that not a bit easier on everybody concerned, including those behind me late for another movie waiting for this process to take place?

To get around this I was getting BoB, the Broadband-in-a-Box solution that included a modem, router and voip/telephone all in one that replaced my old and expensive equipment. They delivered it, all as promised and I took it home, wired it up and turned it on.

Sure I had to do all the various setting up stuff, which a disc was provided for, but I like and am well used to doing this the old way, like using the easy-to-use administration stuff instead of a disc program that asks me the same questions anyway and fills in the blanks for me, really, either way its going to be the same thing.

The box is nice, shiny black and comes with a phone. The phone even came with it’s own extra charger base so I can leave that downstairs in the kitchen while the BoB can sit upstairs in the office where it needs to be anyway.

There’s not much more to say, it works, runs fast, seems to even improve the speed very slightly above the other decent boxes I had.

Voice Over Internet Protocol (voip) is the complex way of saying that your phone calls are now like skype. The sound is converted into data (like a cell phone) and over the ADSL is sent to their servers, these servers then relay to another server or call our to a landline. Serious, if you didn’t ask, you would not know this is what is happening, it all sounded nice and clear and proper, like I was really talking to somebody (like I was).

The simple conclusion is that everything works, iiNet was good at providing me my new service.

Done and dusted.

Ring ring…

So I may be able to help you, please say what this is about…

“Service cancellations”

[wait] OK.. is it about the number your calling from?

“no”

[wait] OK, please say or enter the number

99995551234

[wait] ok is that 03 99995551234?

“yes”

[wait] Click… [wait] Please wait…

[wait] Click.. hold music… Click… [wait] While you are waiting perhaps you would like our combined two for one great service deals on your phone line and pay tv offer… Please discuss this with your service person when you get through…

Click… [wait] … Click… Music on hold… Click [wait] Click…

All of our operators are busy at this time, please hold…

[wait] Click… Music on hold…

[wait] Please wait in the queue until we can respond to your request…

[wait a good three minutes]…

Hi, can I help with your enquiry…?

At last, a person that will tell me what I need to know. And she was helpful.

But I do wonder, if you have various call centres and support staff, and at some level they have different expertise and can help in various ways, I do ask the question, how well does the auto-queuing system actually work?

I have this impression or picture in my mind that I go through the 20 questions, gets clicks and pops and music on hold and no matter what I say or do i am going through to the next person in a mass-cubical room regardless, just answer my call and help me, seriously.

I do see the point in a post-office or other service providing arena, aka, a supermarket where they make you stand in line so you can be distracted by the wonderful things they stack by the register, impulse items I think they call them, but on the phone, advertising more services to me after I said I was enquiring about my cancellation??? Oh wait, yes, re-connect my phone and also give me the full pay-tv option, just on a whim.

Yet they pretend to help me, ask me some guiding questions so they can forward my call to the most appropriate and efficiently trained support person to help me, yet along they way they also expect that person to be able to sell me the ‘next best thing’ that I ‘must have’

No, not liking big corporate masses.

On Saturday I had heard nothing, and this was not unexpected, I was told it could take up to four days, but I gave it a go anyway. Sure enough, the connection was working, but I had no password to provide, it did connect which was good and on trying a web page I got an iiNet error page back telling me my password wasn’t correct.

I went to their linked page and did a password reset online, and got the password to use and it worked. Less than a day to churn over to the new ISP and everything was running well, at least the basic internet services, I couldn’t find any reference to my VOIP/Phone service yet though.

So for the weekend I was downloading and gaming like never before, my new ADSL2+ speed was great, reliable and all working better than expected.

I got an email on Monday, announcing the good news that my services were connected and available. I then found some of the phone info in my toolbox account, but alas, I didn’t know what my voip account number and password was so i had to call them.

iiNet’s customer support was great, sure I had to wait a few minutes for a call back because they were busy (as call centres always are) but they did call back and I got onto a nice helpful person who understood me and gave me exactly what I needed, my voip login details. He also helped me with some of the accounts info and all was great. I got my voip running and made a 20 minute phone call to my sister in the country, a free call…

I am still waiting on the hardware, they said that once the account was active they would send me my new modem/router/bob box, until then I have great internet services with my existing equipment and the voip I have been using through the iPhone application fring.

It seems some of my PS3 gaming has been through their free-view services, not that it’s a lot of data, but I am getting much of it for free, other things like iView (ABC’s online video) is included/separate from the charged data plan but alas, VidZone isn’t free, downloading video clips through the PS3 adds up quickly, beware.

The other part to mention is also the upload rate has improved a lot, I can now even stream video from my home to outside and see things at work.

OK, for now I am very happy and would recommend iiNet.net.au for good value and supportive service.

Read more – Bob the final story

Like most ADSL plans, this rides on a standard line rental with Telstra, so I get a home phone line (mostly unused) for $30/month and a network with TPG for about $50/month and for the most part I have been happy.

I reviewed this recently and have found that iiNet provide ADSL2+ at my exchange and as part of a ‘naked’ plan for $70/month I will get higher speed and more data (I go from 10g to 30g) and also I keep my existing phone number and they provide a VOIP plan which gives me free calls locally and STD within Australia.

I just ordered the service yesterday, it will take up to three full weeks to all happen and I will write again on my future experiences, but for now.. what differences will I get, what do I loose and what did I have to investigate fully to make the decision for me a good one?

What do I get?

The obvious plusses are going to be more data at faster rates. ADSL2+ is better than the older ADSL so as I download stuff and use game machines for online play this will be of benefit. I will save between $10-$20 per month when I include my minimal phone usage. Calling family locally and in the country is going to be free and now we can be more likely to call friends interstate for as long as we want.

What do I loose?

Technically, I will no longer have a static IP number. TPG gave this to me as part of the plan and iiNet don’t (unless I pay extra for a business service) and this means if I want to talk to my home computers from work or elsewhere this may be a little more difficult. I will solve this by using a dynamic domain service where my modem/router will update a service like DynDNS and ensure that home.domain.abc will always point to my home’s IP number.

The VOIP (voice over IP) telephone service I hope will be good, some people are having issues with this and quality reliability levels ad also if the power is out, unlike a normal phone, the network will also be out and my home phone will be out. Thanks to mobile phones this should not be a problem, and realistically, my powered cordless phone doesn’t work when the power is out anyway. Also, from VOIP you can not call emergency services numbers like 000, again something I will rely on my mobile service for.

What’s different?

I bought a nice new ADSL(2+) router a few months ago, thought this would be fairly future proof and all in all has worked well. It would work for iiNet too but it doesn’t provide the hardware/functionality needed for VOIP so I started looking at the options.

An ADA (Analog to Digital Audio) device can allow you to connect normal phones to the data network of your modem/router, they start at about $100 and would do the job. This means that I would have the modem and this ADA box running to make the system work in my house and all be non-supported equipment that I would have to configure, it would probably work and all but take some toying to get right. The basic modem/router/voip box I could get would be about $170 but would not provide the wifi I use, so I would still need to use a wifi box for that also, again two boxes running.

iiNet however have a ‘Bob’ box, which is their high-end all-in-one solution that includes a Modem, Router, Wifi and VOIP phone with handset. For $270 I get one of these and it should do everything I need. It also should use and connect to my other old phone handsets directly, so my current 2 cordless handset phones should work with this single bas station.

What’s the experience?

So far so good. I made a call to iiNet to ask them about the hardware they had as options (as the web site was not too detailed on that score, not at least until I got the the ordering part) and also to check about keeping my phone number and allowing inbound calls (often an issue with VOIP like with skype, you can call out for a fee but need to pay more again for an inbound service). I waited for about 1 minute to get through to sales, and when I did they were really helpful and answered my questions without any issues of comprehension, mis-understandings or need to ask me for a credit card number. I asked, they answered and they said thanks.

The online order form took a few steps to get through, understandable and all (mostly) but it worked great. My biggest problem was addressing the courier delivery of the equipment to my work address, their system was a little limited on the amount of detail I could put in here and my work location needs this detail for stuff to get to me.

Within a couple of hours I got an email confirming the order. I replied to this asking if I needed to do any cancelling of my old services and they replied by the next morning to tell me that they would handle everything.

So for now everything is great. I expect over the next few weeks to loose my phone and network connection and eventually get a new one, along with a cool new black box to play with.

Stay tuned for updates and info on my future experiences.

Read on with Phase 2